Oracle(US:ORCL) CNBC·2026-01-27 10:09Core Viewpoint - TikTok's recent technical issues and content disruptions are attributed to a power outage at one of its data centers, countering allegations of political censorship amid heightened scrutiny due to its new U.S.-led ownership structure [1][2][7]. Group 1: Technical Issues - Users have reported account issues since TikTok began operating under a U.S.-led joint venture, with complaints about potential censorship of political content [2]. - The outage led to a cascading systems failure, resulting in bugs, slower load times, and instances where users saw "0" views or likes on their videos [7]. - TikTok confirmed that messages containing the name "Epstein" triggered error messages, but stated it is investigating the cause of these issues [3][9]. Group 2: Political Context - Complaints about TikTok have been amplified by California Governor Gavin Newsom, who indicated that his office received reports of suppressed content critical of President Trump [4][5]. - Newsom's office has not provided evidence for these claims, although users have shared videos alleging censorship of anti-Trump and anti-ICE content [5][6]. - The political environment is tense, particularly regarding the operations of ICE in Minneapolis, which has sparked significant public debate [6]. Group 3: Ownership Structure - TikTok has formed a joint venture to continue operations in the U.S., with ByteDance retaining a 19.9% stake and U.S. and global investors holding 80.1% [11]. - Key investors in the new structure include Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX, each holding a 15% stake [11]. - The joint venture was established following a Supreme Court ruling that required TikTok to divest from its Chinese parent company to remain operational in the U.S. [10].